Wally Odd
Founder & President
USU National Alliance
on Mental Illness
alumni@usu.edu
435-797-2055
Dear Patricia Stevens,
The USU Women’s Center is a program dedicated to the furthering of the education of women. They deal with abolishing stereotypes, stress management and helping the under-privileged woman handle domestic issues to return to receive a higher education. Many women are denied further education because of the domestic nature of rearing children and dealing with mental illness themselves. The National Alliance on Mental Illness is an organization that can give appropriate resources to help with recovery and coping with mental illnesses. Twice as many women than men suffer from a mental illness. Two out of four women suffer from a mental illness, within the ages of 18 and older. The Women’s center could use NAMI resources to help them overcome this issue with more precision and depth.
Our goal is raising awareness among Cache Valley residents about the free resources and strategies available to them through the venue of NAMI about the issues of mental illness. NAMI is a support group and resource center, a basic grassroots effort taking advantage of local experiences with a peer-to-peer approach.
We will be holding a conference about the affects and challenges that come with mental illness. We are asking for 1,000 donation from each of our sponsors. That funding will pay for the catering of the event. This event can be successful with the help of our sponsors. The awareness will be raised among the general public of Cache Valley. Mental illness affects our society, and with peer-to-peer approach to support groups and resources, will increase the standard of living, break stereotypes .
The Women’s Center, “Provides information, assistance and referral concerning the opportunities and resources available on campus and in the community.”
The USU affiliate and NAMI is not well known, yet one out of five families have a family member diagnosed mental illness. One out of four Americans have a diagnosed mental illness and two out of four women have a mental illness. The counseling center isn’t fully utilized because it costs money if you are not a student. NAMI is a free service with a peer-to-peer approach. Not only will this be another form of resource that the Women’s Center has pledged to have, but will also give them a bigger outreach for those who need help and services.
We plan to use USU campus for the location of the event. We will use the Women’s Center’s name as our forefront in the flyers and poster sent around Cache Valley (which also includes the Preston, Idaho, area). We would market the event three weeks in advance with the local business owners and the city of Logan. We would then use the social networks and NAMI PSA’s on the local radio stations to advertise for the event a week before. We will be selling tickets through USU ticket office when the posters/fliers go up.
NAMI is a nation-wide organization found in all 50 states. They have an annual convention during the second quarter held this year in San Francisco. Director and President Wally Odd founded the organization in Utah and has spread his outreach nation-wide. Our team of planners have international experience and outreach. We have an understanding of the local demographic. We have personal experience with the challenge of coping with mental illness.
Our estimated Budget:
SERVICES
1-Catering:
Food/Dining Services $2,500
(Utah States catering %25 off because of being a student affiliation)
2-Place:
Utah State Ballroom $1,000
3- Advertisements:
Fliers/posters $200
Tickets $100
PSA $0.00
Speaker:
Wally Odd NAMI Cache Valley President $0.00
A member of the Women’s Center $0.00
Sponsors
Women’s Center $1,500
Ticket Sales
Tickets $10 ea.
Seats available: 450
Total Expense $3,800
With Donation $2,200
We are excited to have you join our efforts and for us to join in your work. We feel that this event can be a success with your audience as well with the local residents. Together, we can further our outreach and help lighten the load of challenges that affect us all. We look forward for your response and feedback.
Sincerely
Wally Odd
